> Things change over time and what was said yesterday may no longer be
> true today. I think all questions posed in this thread are valid, just
> because some regular read an answer to a question back in 2004 doesn't
> mean it still isn't valid as a question to pose today and want an
> answer to. If anything, that just shows to Google that perhaps they
> need to update their official response area (webmaster help center)
> with that answer so that all webmasters, not just the few hundred that
> post here, have a fair shot at reading it.

> With regards to the actual thread at hand, we're about 4 days away
> from the two week mark at which time Google has committed to answer 5
> questions posed here. Since Google is making this unusual gesture to
> communicate with us, perhaps we should do the unusual too, and all
> come together and agree on the 5 questions we'd like to see answered
> by Google. We've got a few days to seive out all the real questions
> here and then see for ourselves if they've been answered or not
> elsewhere. That will leave a few questions that have never been
> answered and that we REALLY want an answer to. We then come together
> as a group and post those 5 questions here together. Of course Google
> might not choose to answer those 5 questions, but that would be going
> against us, the users, and from Google's own goals we know that the
> users are their main priority. So either they shoot their company
> objectives in the foot, or they see this is a great opportunity to
> really help out.

> What do you say? I'm willing to put some time into going through this
> thread and picking out the questions, without the fluff and then
> starting a new thread where we get together to decide on the final 5
> before putting to the G'plex. Who's on board - it's 4 days to d-day,
> or should I say G-day? :)

> On Oct 3, 9:55 am, cass-hacks wrote:

> > > Well, that's your opinion. You state it as fact, but it is only your
> > > opinion. There are enough others who claim that there is such a
> > > penalty though.

> > No, it is not only my opinion.  If it were an opinion I would have
> > said so.

> > What I wrote is based on what has been said, one way or another, by
> > numerous Google employees and although it might have just been their
> > opinion, I would value their opinion at least slightly higher than
> > someone on the outside that is just guessing.

> > Are any of the others who make the claim that a "duplicate content
> > penalty" exists Google employees?

> > Thought not.  ;-)

> > On the other hand, Google employees, "Vanessa Fox" to name one, have
> > actually stated that there is no such thing as a "duplicate content
> > penalty".

> > Hint, there is some quoted text in the previous sentence that you can
> > use in a Google search to get it straight from the horses mouth, so to
> > speak.  "Seek and ye shall find."  ;-)

> > On that note, why should Googlers here in this forum answer questions
> > that have been answered by Googlers numerous times and in numerous
> > ways?

> > Craig